


i'll be waiting (for as long as it takes)

by violetstorm



Category: Tales of the Abyss
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Introspection, Kinda?, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2018-04-04
Packaged: 2019-04-18 05:10:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14205783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/violetstorm/pseuds/violetstorm
Summary: The world has never been fair to Guy.





	i'll be waiting (for as long as it takes)

**Author's Note:**

> There's some brief descriptions of violence here? Mentions of choking and whatnot. It's nothing drastic, but I want to make sure that, you know, it's clear that this isn't the happiest fic. There are also spoilers for the entire game. You have been warned!
> 
> Enjoy your read~!

He holds a blade against his throat in the moonlight. His breaths are quiet and if he just inched the blade a little closer, those breaths would stop. What would it be like, when he finally kills him? The gurgle of blood in this throat, the betrayal in his eyes and his fading breath are all things he shouldn’t feel excited about, but it was all _his_ fault for making him like this.

He’ll probably cry when it happens. He always cries.

_(He never stops.)_

* * *

 It’s just a spar, Guy tells himself. They have wooden swords and maybe it’s for the better, he thinks, when their spar ends with Guy’s blade digging into Luke’s chest. He’s barely without a scratch, while Luke is covered in dirt, having been thrown to the ground one too many times. He’s sloppy in battle, too excited, too eager, too enthusiastic to beat down his foe without regard for his life.

“You left your guard wide open,” Guy says casually.

_(He still does, but this time, Guy’s there to cover his back.)_

* * *

“What happened to your family?” Luke looks so innocent, eyes wide with childlike curiosity.

Your father killed them. He slaughtered them. But Guy doesn’t say that out-loud because it’s not time for his revenge, not yet. When Guy, at long last, would repeat the actions of the past unto Luke’s family, he’ll have his answer.

“I’ll tell you later,” Guy replies.

_(Thanks to the curse slot, he spills the truth and he curses Sync for giving him that damned thing.)_

* * *

 The Jewel of Gardios hangs behind Duke Fabre as Guy leans down on one knee. Yes sir. I understand. I’ll do it. He takes orders without complaint and he waits for the day when he can finally take back his sword and paint it red with the Fabre’s blood.

_(His back was exposed, guard left wide open but it’s alright because Guy is there, intercepting the thief’s blade with his own. He drives the Jewel of Gardios into the thief’s chest, and spares a glance to see if Luke is alright. He is and Guy can breathe easy once more.)_

* * *

 Vandesdelca is there and he looks at Guy with pity. A noble from Malkuth, reduced to a servant in Kimlasca, a dog to the Fabres. He whispers of revenge and vows to follow Guy on the path he walks. He, along with Pere, is the only one who understands.

_(Guy’s the only one who understands Vandesdelca the best and that’s exactly why it’s his duty to stop him.)_

Vandesdelca calls him Gailardia, and he hangs onto that word like its a lifeline, the only thing anchoring him to his past. Soon, Vandesdelca says, soon you’ll be Gailardia again.

_(He’s called Gailardia again, but to them, he’s just Guy, he’s always been Guy, and he’s fine with that.)_

* * *

 “Guy’s my best friend,” Luke says one day, so matter-of-factly. It takes Guy everything he has not to burst out laughing. A servant, your best friend? Luke’s too trusting, he’s so stupid for believing that, when he’ll never be anything but a pawn for Guy’s revenge.

_(He’s the stupid one for believing Luke never be anything but a pawn for his revenge.)_

Luke looks forward to spending his days with Guy and Guy looks forward to the day where he won’t have to waste anymore time with Luke.

_(Now, his time is running out and Guy can’t do anything but stand by him for the remainder of his days.)_

* * *

 He counts the days until Luke will die.

_(He counts the hours until Luke will die.)_

Sunrise is a reminder that there’s another day of pretending that everything is alright, like he's not living under the eyes of murderers.

_(Sunrise comes too soon and he doesn’t bother pretending that everything is alright because it isn’t.)_

Luke’s a whiny brat — even Guy didn’t cry this much as a kid. He’s rougher with him than he should be — hauling him up to his feet with nails buried deep in his arms when he falls and snippy remarks to harmless questions — but who cares if it hurts? His father did a lot worse to his family.

_(He wants to grab him by the shoulders, shake him, punch him, yell at him until his voice grows hoarse but he doesn’t because Luke’s already going through so much pain.)_

Luke is selfish. His demands are frivolous and he can barely take care of himself. He’s in his own sheltered bubble and he never has to worry about anything and he doesn’t care about his family about his status about his wealth about anything because he’s never known what it’s like to suffer and Guy hates him, hates him, hates him he doesn’t deserve to live doesn’t deserve such a blessed life built from the blood of Guy’s family and—

The world’s been too kind to him. Guy’s only balancing the scales— it’s only fair that he suffers as much as Guy did.

_(Luke is selfless. He’s shaking, but his voice doesn’t waver when he volunteers to sacrifice himself and Guy has never hated him more in that moment. Damn the miasma— he deserves to live just as much as anybody else and it doesn’t matter if the world falls in the process. It’s been nothing but cruel to both him and Luke anyway; they’re only returning the favour.)_

* * *

 Stupid bastard, Guy hisses under his breath in the safety of his bedroom. The thought of Luke makes him see red and it’s Pere that stops him from smashing something, breaking something, don’t do that, it’ll be too loud, Duke Fabre will question you and you can’t get kicked out now, not when the final act of your revenge is coming close.

_(“Guy… thanks,” he says and he plunges the sword into the ground with a sense of finality. It's really happening. Luke is going to die._

_“You stupid bastard,” Guy snarls through gritted teeth and those are his last words to Luke, words he’s always wanted to say but never got the opportunity to before. It’s fitting; he’s always been a stupid bastard for one reason or another. He deserves to know how much pain his “selfless” sacrifice is causing Guy.)_

* * *

Before he and Pere found themselves in Duke Fabre’s manor, they wandered around Auldrant for some time. The world outside of Hod was so vast and beautiful, from the rolling hills around Engeve to the sparkling fountains of Grand Chokmah, to the endless sea and sky he could see from the top of Baticul, the sea his only connection to his homeland in the prison of Duke Fabre’s manor.

_(The miasma clears away, purple mist fading to reveal bright blue skies dotted with clouds, hope on the horizon and Guy has never seen something that repulsive.)_

* * *

 He’s always dreamed of the day of Luke’s death.

_(His nightmares are all about Luke’s death.)_

How would he finally die? Would it be a sword through the chest? A knife along his neck? Poison in his drink? Fingers pressing on his throat?

_(He dies in so many ways. Sometimes he’s not careful enough in battle. Sometimes he doesn't come fast enough and he finds Natalia and Luke lying on the floor with empty glasses. Sometimes it’s because the miasma is too thick.)_

Guy’s not picky about the method, though. As long as he dies, yes, that’s good enough.

_(He dies, once, and apparently that’s not good enough. The world is unfair and condemns him to death once again and once again, Guy can’t stop it.)_

* * *

 “You’re being stupid,” Luke says.

_(Maybe so.)_

“You knew, huh?”

_(Of course.)_

* * *

“When you come home,” _when._ “I’m gonna teach you not to hide things from your friends.”

 _(He leaves without looking back, without so much as a hug as there will be another chance for that in the future. Neither say goodbye; there’s no need to. Guy_ knows _Luke will return and he wholly believes he will because the alternative is too painful to think about.)_

_(But, the world’s never been fair to Guy.)_

**Author's Note:**

> I thought this up and wrote it in little under two hours, in present-tense (when I write more with past-tense), so you have my apologies for any mistakes or confusing parts and the like. The italicized parts in brackets are Guy's thoughts and feelings during the game, when he actually cares about Luke, while the other parts are Guy's thoughts pre-game, when he still wanted to kill Luke, if that wasn't clear.
> 
> The title comes from Guy's quote at the end of the game, "I'll be waiting. It's lonely being a servant without a master." It has two meanings: How Guy is waiting, for as long as it takes, for the perfect chance to strike and follow through with his revenge and how he's always going to wait for Luke to come back after Eldrant, no matter how long it takes...? im trying to sound smart and failing terribly i'm bad at titles sue me.


End file.
